Bus drivers and teens are like oil and water — they don't mix...usually.
Take this video for example:
Summary of video:What you just watched was a video of two guys in their late teens refusing to pay the whole bus fare (only putting in one quarter), the bus driver telling them to pay or get off the bus, and one of them spitting in the driver's face as they leave the bus. This is an example of one of the reason why bus drivers for the MBTA do not particularly like teens.
Can you believe this guy?!
"'Do teenagers have a right to be in the city? Are they entitled to use the Metro? Are movie theaters and ice cream parlors reasonable places for them to hang out?'
Herbert Miller, the developer of Gallery Place, answered 'no' to all those questions when he recently installed a "mosquito device" at the Chinatown entrance to the Gallery Place Metro station. The 'mosquito' emits a high-pitched squeal that people older than about 25 can't hear, but gives teenagers headaches. The idea was to discourage teens from coming anywhere near the heart of one of the city's busiest entertainment and transit destinations."
Do you want bus drivers to treat you better on the bus?
Well, if you're like most teens, you'll say yes to that question. But that raises the question as to how we are supposed to to do that.
Here's what you can do to improve your experience on the T:
You can start up volunteer groups to go once, maybe twice, a week, month, or whenever to spend about an hour of your time at the station to wait for a bus to clean! However, that may be a big first step, so you can do these steps first before creating the volunteer groups:
Clean up after yourselves on the bus. I'm sure the bus drivers will appreciate that very much.
Don't be ridiculously loud on the bus. Why? For one, you most definitely are not the only rider. Secondly, there's really no reason to scream and shout on a bus in the first place.
Thank the bus driver as you get on and off the bus. It's respectful and shows that you actually appreciate their service.
Be considerate to the bus driver and others on the bus. Golden Rule: Treat people the way you want to be treated.
Don't be late for the bus. We're not asking you to be on time all the time, but just remember that the bus drivers have schedules to follow and people have places to go.
These are small, simple steps you can take to start off on the right foot. You would set a good example on kids and other teens who take the bus as well. As for the volunteer groups, you can start off by contacting the MBTA representatives or executives to ask for permission to start it up. Then you can come up with a schedule to go to the stations and clean up buses. Once that is done, you can create "suggested schedules" for everyone in the group. Now, the words "suggested schedule" may sound a bit confusing, but it's just asheet of paper that tells who is going to the station to clean the buses and when, but you don't actually have to go when it's your turn. Why don't you have to go? Simple: It's volunteer work. If you're forced to do it, then it's not really volunteering anymore. You also don't have to follow the schedule; if you feel like cleaning the buses just to help out, then feel free to go! Like we mentioned earlier, it's a suggested schedule, so you don't have to go. It would be really helpful if you do go, though.
We use this as a motivator, you can use this as a motivator too!
Bus drivers and teens are like oil and water — they don't mix...usually.
Take this video for example:
Summary of video: What you just watched was a video of two guys in their late teens refusing to pay the whole bus fare (only putting in one quarter), the bus driver telling them to pay or get off the bus, and one of them spitting in the driver's face as they leave the bus. This is an example of one of the reason why bus drivers for the MBTA do not particularly like teens.
Can you believe this guy?!
"'Do teenagers have a right to be in the city? Are they entitled to use the Metro? Are movie theaters and ice cream parlors reasonable places for them to hang out?'
Herbert Miller, the developer of Gallery Place, answered 'no' to all those questions when he recently installed a "mosquito device" at the Chinatown entrance to the Gallery Place Metro station. The 'mosquito' emits a high-pitched squeal that people older than about 25 can't hear, but gives teenagers headaches. The idea was to discourage teens from coming anywhere near the heart of one of the city's busiest entertainment and transit destinations."
Read the rest of this article at:
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/local-opinions/2010/09/stop_treating_teenagers_like_i.htmlDo you want bus drivers to treat you better on the bus?
Well, if you're like most teens, you'll say yes to that question. But that raises the question as to how we are supposed to to do that.Here's what you can do to improve your experience on the T:
You can start up volunteer groups to go once, maybe twice, a week, month, or whenever to spend about an hour of your time at the station to wait for a bus to clean! However, that may be a big first step, so you can do these steps first before creating the volunteer groups:These are small, simple steps you can take to start off on the right foot. You would set a good example on kids and other teens who take the bus as well. As for the volunteer groups, you can start off by contacting the MBTA representatives or executives to ask for permission to start it up. Then you can come up with a schedule to go to the stations and clean up buses. Once that is done, you can create "suggested schedules" for everyone in the group. Now, the words "suggested schedule" may sound a bit confusing, but it's just a sheet of paper that tells who is going to the station to clean the buses and when, but you don't actually have to go when it's your turn. Why don't you have to go? Simple: It's volunteer work. If you're forced to do it, then it's not really volunteering anymore. You also don't have to follow the schedule; if you feel like cleaning the buses just to help out, then feel free to go! Like we mentioned earlier, it's a suggested schedule, so you don't have to go. It would be really helpful if you do go, though.
We use this as a motivator, you can use this as a motivator too!